COLUMN: When Trump Seeks to Regain Control of the Vote, Democracy Trembles

American Federalism: A Founding Principle

Let’s go back to basics. The U.S. Constitution is clear: it is the states, not the federal government, that organize and oversee elections. This division of powers between the federal government and the states is a fundamental principle of American federalism. Counties and local authorities manage polling places, count ballots, and certify results. The federal government plays only a limited role, primarily to ensure equal access to the ballot and to protect against discrimination. It has been this way since the country’s founding. This is exactly how the Founding Fathers intended it to be, to prevent a central authority from manipulating elections at will.

Trump Against the Constitution

But Trump doesn’t care. Or rather, he views the Constitution as an obstacle to be circumvented. In the Oval Office on February 3, 2026, he told reporters: “The state is an agent of the federal government when it comes to elections. I don’t know why the federal government doesn’t just organize them anyway.” A statement that has constitutional scholars up in arms. No, Mr. President, the states are not “agents” of the federal government. They are sovereign entities within their respective spheres of jurisdiction. And elections fall within that scope. Republican Senator John Thune, despite being the Senate Majority Leader, had to point out this obvious fact: “I am not in favor of federalizing elections. I firmly believe in decentralized and distributed power. It’s harder to hack fifty election systems than just one.”

Thune is right. And a Republican is saying it. That should give us pause. Because if even Trump’s political allies are starting to sound the alarm, it means we’ve gone too far. Way too far. Electoral decentralization isn’t a flaw in the American system. It’s a feature. A safeguard. A bulwark against tyranny. And Trump wants to destroy it.

November 2026: A Decisive Election

Why now? Why this sudden offensive against the U.S. electoral system? The answer is simple: the November 2026 midterm elections are fast approaching. And historically, the party of the sitting president loses seats in these elections. The Democrats need to win back just three Republican seats in the House of Representatives to regain control. Three seats. That’s not many. It’s doable. And for Trump, it’s unacceptable. Losing the House would mean losing legislative power, facing congressional investigations, and seeing his agenda blocked. So he’s planning ahead. He’s laying the groundwork. He’s sowing doubt.

The Strategy of Fear and Lies

Trump continues to repeat his lies about the 2020 election. “We have states that are so corrupt when it comes to counting votes. We have states that I won, but they’re showing that I didn’t win,” he claimed on the podcast with Bongino. No evidence. No facts. Just baseless accusations, repeated ad nauseam until a portion of the population eventually believes them. This is the “big lie” technique, the one demagogues have used since the dawn of time. And it works. It works because people want to believe that if their candidate lost, it must be because of fraud. Not because he got fewer votes. No, that would be too simple.

I’m tired. Tired of hearing the same lies. Tired of seeing the truth trampled on, over and over again. Tired of seeing millions of people swallow these fables without batting an eye. But I refuse to give up. Because if we abandon the truth, if we let lies become the norm, then we’ve already lost. Democracy cannot survive without truth. It simply cannot. It crumbles, slowly but surely, until there’s nothing left.

Voter ID: A Divisive Debate

In the face of criticism, the White House has attempted to clarify Trump’s remarks. Spokesperson Karoline Leavitt explained that the president was referring to the SAVE Act, a bill proposed by Republicans that would require proof of citizenship to register to vote and a photo ID to cast a ballot. “Common-sense measures,” she said. Except that these measures, far from being neutral, create barriers for millions of Americans: seniors who no longer have driver’s licenses; low-income citizens who cannot afford to obtain identification; and minorities who have historically had less access to such documents. The SAVE Act is a restriction on the right to vote disguised as a security measure.

The Threat of Financial Blackmail

But Trump doesn’t intend to stop there. According to several sources close to his administration, he is considering withholding federal funds from states that refuse to adopt his new election requirements. Every year, the federal government provides hundreds of millions of dollars to the states to help them administer elections: voting equipment, cybersecurity updates, and training for election officials. Trump could use this money as leverage—as blackmail. “You want your grants? Then play by my rules.” This is institutional extortion. And it’s completely illegal—but that’s never stopped him.

We’re talking about democracy here. Democracy. The right to vote is not a favor granted to citizens. It’s a fundamental right. An inalienable right. And when a president starts imposing conditions, creating barriers, and threatening states that don’t comply, we’re no longer in a democracy. We’re in outright authoritarianism. And it makes me sick.

Mark Warner: “This Isn’t About 2020”

Democratic lawmakers are under no illusions. Senator Mark Warner of Virginia, co-chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, held a press conference on February 3 to denounce Trump’s maneuvers. “This isn’t about the 2020 election. Frankly, it’s about what comes next.” Warner and his colleagues fear that Trump is seeking to manipulate the results of the midterm elections—not just to influence the debate, but to rig the system itself. To place his people in election offices. To intimidate local officials. To create chaos and then use it as a pretext to intervene.

Secretaries of State Are Preparing for the Worst

Democratic secretaries of state, who are responsible for organizing elections in their respective states, are actively preparing for a potential federal intervention. At their annual winter meeting in late January, they discussed scenarios that would have seemed unthinkable just a few years ago: how to protect voters from interactions with federal law enforcement at polling places? How to resist requests for access to the personal information of tens of millions of voters? Steve Simon, Minnesota’s secretary of state, summed up the situation: “This is now a legitimate category of planning. It’s extraordinarily sad, but it would be irresponsible of us to ignore this possibility.”

Read that last sentence carefully. “It’s extraordinarily sad.” Yes, Steve Simon. It is sad. It’s even heartbreaking. Because we’ve reached a point where election officials must plan how to protect democracy from their own president. From their own government. This is Trump’s America. A country where the guardians of democracy must barricade themselves in to prevent those in power from destroying the system from within.

The Hunt for Voter Lists

Trump’s Department of Justice isn’t sitting idly by. It has filed lawsuits against two dozen states to gain full access to their voter rolls, including sensitive personal information such as Social Security numbers and home addresses. The administration claims it is looking for evidence of votes cast by undocumented immigrants—a largely imagined threat. Studies show that voting by non-citizens is extremely rare—almost nonexistent. But the facts don’t matter. Trump needs an enemy. A scapegoat. And immigrants fit the bill perfectly.

Tulsi Gabbard and Electronic Voting Systems

Last April, during a cabinet meeting, Tulsi Gabbard claimed that her office was investigating issues of election integrity, alleging that there was evidence that electronic voting systems were “vulnerable to exploitation to manipulate votes.” Once again, no independent evidence was provided. Experts in electoral cybersecurity have repeatedly refuted these allegations. But Gabbard, a loyal Trump lieutenant, continues to spread these conspiracy theories. Her role in the Fulton County raid also raises serious legal and constitutional questions. Senator Warner denounced her presence as a politicization of an institution that must remain neutral and apolitical.

Gabbard deeply disappoints me. She who was once a Democrat, who championed peace and justice. Now here she is, complicit in an effort to dismantle democracy. How did she end up here? Out of ambition? Out of conviction? Out of blindness? I don’t know. But what I do know is that she bears a heavy responsibility for what is happening. And history will not be kind to her.

Mike Johnson and John Thune: Between Loyalty and the Constitution

The two top Republican leaders in Congress—House Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune—find themselves in an uncomfortable position. They cannot openly support the idea of federalizing elections without betraying their own conservative principles of decentralizing power. But neither can they criticize Trump too directly without alienating their base. So they’re treading carefully. They’re dodging the issue. Johnson has stated that it isn’t necessary to take control of elections in certain states, while asserting that Trump’s concerns about election integrity are justified. Thune has reiterated his opposition to federalization, but without explicitly condemning the president’s remarks.

Rand Paul and the Dissenting Voices

A few bolder Republican voices have spoken out. Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky, a staunch libertarian, expressed reservations about the idea of nationalizing elections, noting that it would run counter to the fundamental principles of American conservatism. But these voices remain in the minority. Most Republican lawmakers prefer to remain silent, either out of fear of political reprisals or for electoral reasons. Some have even briefly threatened to block a budget deal to prevent a partial government shutdown unless the bill includes provisions on citizenship and voter identification. Blackmail as a method of governance.

The Republicans’ silence terrifies me just as much as Trump’s actions. Because it is this silence that allows everything to happen. It is this silence that normalizes the unacceptable. It is this silence that transforms a democracy into a dictatorship, little by little, without anyone really realizing it. Until the day it’s too late. And then we wonder how we got here. Well, that’s just how it is. Through cowardice. Through opportunism. Through complicit silence.

The Capitol Riot: A Warning Ignored

Brendan Nyhan, a political science professor at Dartmouth College, posted a chilling message on X (formerly Twitter): “The last time he started talking like this, his allies downplayed the risks, and we ended up with January 6.” January 6, 2021. That date will go down in American history as a day of shame. The day a mob of Trump supporters stormed the Capitol to prevent the certification of Biden’s victory. Five dead. Hundreds injured. American democracy on the brink of collapse. And all because Trump had spent months repeating that the election had been stolen. The same lies he’s repeating today.

Executive Orders: Bypassing Congress

In March 2025, Trump had already signed an executive order seeking to require proof of U.S. citizenship to register to vote and to prohibit states from counting mail-in ballots received after Election Day. The order was partially blocked by federal courts, but Trump did not give up. In August 2025, he promised to “lead a movement” to end mail-in voting and vowed to sign an executive order banning mail-in ballots and voting machines. He ultimately did not do so, but the threat remains. Trump is testing the limits. He pushes. He backs off when he encounters too much resistance. Then he pushes again, a little further.

It’s the salami strategy. You slice it off bit by bit. A small executive order here. A small raid there. A small inflammatory statement. And before you know it, democracy has been cut into pieces. Nothing remains. Just the appearance. The facade. But the inside is empty. Hollow. Dead.

November 2026: A Decisive Test

The November 2026 midterm elections will be a decisive test for American democracy. Either the institutions will hold firm, the states will stand their ground, the courts will do their job, and the American electoral system will prove its resilience—or Trump will get his way, impose his rules, intimidate local officials, and pave the way for an authoritarian transformation of the country. There are no half-measures. No gray area. It’s one or the other. And time is running out. With each passing day, Trump and his administration lay new bricks in their edifice of control. Each day, the resistance grows a little weaker—weary, discouraged, and overwhelmed.

The Call for Vigilance

Democratic election officials are preparing. Constitutional lawyers are sounding the alarm. Democracy experts are raising the alarm. But will that be enough? Will American citizens wake up in time? Will the media do their job of informing the public and serving as a check on power? Will moderate Republicans finally find the courage to say no? Because this is the moment when everything is at stake. Not tomorrow. Not after the election. Now. Every silence is complicity. Every inaction is a capitulation. Every compromise is a defeat. Democracy doesn’t defend itself. It needs us. Each and every one of us. And time is running out.

I don’t know how this story will end. I’d like to be optimistic. I’d like to believe that the American system, with all its safeguards, all its institutions, and all its history, will be able to hold its ground. But I’m afraid. Really afraid. Because I’ve seen too many democracies collapse. Too many peoples have lost their freedoms. Too many authoritarian leaders have seized power by promising order and security. And every time, it was the same. The signs were there. The warnings, too. But no one acted. Until it was too late. So I beg you: don’t let this happen. Not in America. Not now. Not like this.

Signed, Jacques Provost